Inmates at a high-security prison in Rome prepare for a public performance of Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar."
A hit in Berlin, the Taviani siblings' doc has plenty of wit and punch, although compared to the best of the medium - Man On Wire, for instance - it sometimes comes off as guileless and clunky.
On occasion, a maladroit heavy-handedness creeps in (“since I got to know art, this cell has become a prison” laments one actor), but Caesar Must Die otherwise delivers a compelling and considered take on immemorial themes.
The procedure of the prisoners being locked in their cells each night is the stark reminder of who they are, yet a thin flame of humanity has been kindled. In a 400-year-old play they have found, briefly, a way of escape.
The composition and focus on the faces of the prisoners make this compelling. It is also poignant in revealing the way in which the performance is both liberating and crushing with one prisoner confessing: “Since I discovered art this cell has become a prison.”
The most powerful thing about the film is the "audition" scene at the beginning in which the prisoners have to introduce themselves in two ways: sorrowingly, and then angrily. It is a brilliant sequence, and the rest of the film doesn't quite match it.
This is devastating, and one will not easily forget the line spoken by the convict we've seen playing Cassius: "Since I have discovered art, this cell has turned into a prison."
Filmmaking brothers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani document the rehearsals for a production of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, performed by the inmates of an Italian prison. It’s diverting, but at least one twist – even the naturalistic rehearsals are scripted – feels like an arthouse flourish.
Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee from Friday March 15, 2013, until Thursday March 21, 2013. More info: www.dca.org.uk
Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow from Friday March 22, 2013, until Thursday March 28, 2013. More info: http://www.glasgowfilm.org/theatre/
Eden Court Theatre, Inverness from Friday April 12, 2013, until Monday April 15, 2013. More info: www.eden-court.co.uk
Edinburgh Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Friday April 19, 2013, until Monday April 22, 2013. More info: www.filmhousecinema.com
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